When I interviewed Frank Caliendo last week, I began the conversation by noting his recent appearances on several local radio stations and asked him if he gets tired of doing so much press.
“Not really,” he said light-heartedly. “I’m just whoring it out.”
That may not be such a tough sell. Caliendo is perhaps the top impression comic today, with more than 100 characters in his repertoire; he didn’t do too many voices for me, seeing as I work for print media and all.
All in all, though, being jovial seems to be Caliendo’s nature, as opposed to him “being on” all the time. He spent a good part of our talk cracking jokes and otherwise laughing, almost like he actually ENJOYED talking to me (a rare trait among interview subjects).
He said he still enjoys doing his most popular voices such as John Madden, despite the non-stop requests he gets to do them. He also said the president is as fun to perform as he is an obvious target.
“When I started, Will Ferrell was the only one doing the president,” said Caliendo, referring to Ferrell’s “Saturday Night Live” sketches. “I have a pretty decent life. There’s no reason to get mad for someone asking me to do something that so many people like.”
Caliendo, who will appear Friday night at Seneca Niagara Casino and Hotel, said he hasn’t been to this region since a series of college tours he did in the first part of this decade. If you can’t catch his return here, give his TBS series “Frank TV” a shot when its second season starts in mid-October.
Visit here for my Night & Day story about Caliendo.
Life in the Slow Lane 